


Opus Eponymous

by siltscribe



Category: Rover Red: Alone in Apocalypse (Podcast)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 03:21:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,959
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12572620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/siltscribe/pseuds/siltscribe
Summary: Quick disclaimer: Okay guys, here’s the thing. Braddick, in the Rover Red universe, was based on an actual person, one of the Patreon supporters.Real Brad, however; wasn’t involved in this project.   He knewsomethingwas going down, and he gave me permission to use a few things in the story.The point I’m getting at here is, Our Braddick is sort of a goof. Possibly more likeable than podcast!Braddock - but, still a bit of a mess.  And as far as we know, these negative attributes aren’t any indication of the sort of person Real Brad is.We’re sure he is a wonderful person who doesn’t wear Crocs (hey, unless its your thing. I hear they’re super comfy) and isn’t the pompous caricature we’ve made Braddick into.But he might like Ghost. And if he doesn’t like Golden Girls, he should; and we’re not apologizing for that.





	Opus Eponymous

Today was the day. 

Kate clutched their art portfolio to their chest as they climbed the last flight of stairs to Pope’s office. 

They’d been emailing Pope for what felt like weeks, trying to convince him to look at their designs. Everyone Kate had talked to so far in Council so far had agreed. What the Council was using now was terrible, and needed to go.

The one person that hadn’t seemed to agree however, was Braddick. And since he was the one in charge, that had been a problem. 

Erika, Braddick’s secretary, had came through though. Kate wasn’t sure what she’d said to Braddick to change his mind; or truthfully, if she even had. From what they’d heard about Erika, it wouldn’t have been surprising to learn she’d just added Kate to his calendar without asking.

Really, it didn’t matter how the meeting had come to happen, the point was that it _had._ And maybe that in itself was a good sign.

When Kate made it to the top of the stairwell to the door there, they had to pause for a moment to catch their breath before knocking. Of course, Braddick’s office was on the top floor. Where else would it be? 

Sure, taking the elevator would have been easier… but after last week’s sing-a-long debacle, the elevator was a no go. I mean, there’s only so much of one song a person can take. 

Kate took a breath, squared their shoulders, and knocked lightly on the door.

“Come in, come in.” Braddick, seated behind a giant desk, waved them in and nodded at the empty chair in the room.

The office was huge- probably three times the size of Kate’s own. Bigger, actually; if you counted whatever living spaces he had up here. No one she knew was exactly sure what it consisted of, and Kate was half convinced none of the Council members had ever asked; solely because the speculation was more fun. 

The office they stood in now looked pristine. A place for everything. Even if some of those things did seem a bit … _unconventional_. Everything was clean, and some of the surfaces were shiny enough Kate could see their reflection in them. In fact, it was terribly tempting to make a face at themself. The only thing that kept Kate from doing so, was the fact that they needed to make a good impression on Braddick if there was any chance to get the logo changes approved. 

Chewing their cheek, Kate kept anxiety at bay by examine the various portraits on the walls. They'd expected ones of Speaker Prime, various Elders, or even Lieutenant Slade. But none of those people were featured. It didn't seem any figures from Apocalypse were.

Instead, the portraits were of what looked like three different men, all dressed in a manner somewhat similar to the way Braddick was. One of the men looked considerably younger than the other two, who were quite a bit older than anyone they’d met in Apocalypse so far. 

Kate nodded at the portraits, and eased into the chair across the desk from him. “Who are they? Are they family?” 

Braddick chuckled, shaking his head. “No.” Without waiting for Kate to respond, he tilted his head, and spoke with thoughtful reverence. “Actually, I suppose in a sense, they are. They're men of faith, men of power-- men who held the position of Pope before.” 

Kate nodded. He meant before the First Bloom, when society was quite a different place. As a rule, Rovers didn't talk much about this period. It wasn't that it wasn;t allowed, it just didn't align with their goals. But, few people Kate had met since taking this Council job seemed to display the qualities they’d been taught all Rovers embodied. Braddick, Kate was discovering, wasn't an exception. 

“Between you, me, and all three Papa’s,” he began, jutting his thumb backwards towards the vaguely menacing looking portraits, “these men are why I adopted the moniker of Pope for my own.” His chest practically puffed with pride as he spoke. “Such a pillar of godliness, Papa Emeritus, was. Especially Papa E the third. They say he had a way with the younger people, if you believe the stories.” 

Kate didn't. Not because they thought the stories werent true… they honestly didn't know what stories he meant. He seemed so earnest though, they couldn't bring themself to say otherwise, so they just nodded. Besides, breathing was still somewhat of an issue, so Kate was grateful Braddick seemed content to monologue about his spiritual predecessors. Kate listened, hands folded in their lap, drumming their fingers a little against the folder laying there, hoping that listening to Braddick’s stories would earn them a bit of favor.

The man across from Kate was indeed dressed in a grandiose manner. He wore ornate gold and white robes, with a blood red sash that draped down his front, that covered in what looked like crosses, but were intersected by capitalized letter G’s. As if the outfit itself wasn’t lavish enough, a large hat balanced precariously on his head, covered in the same ornate gold and white as his robes. For someone who rarely left his quarters, he was dressed awfully formally. Except his shoes. Those were a dull yellow, and covered with holes. It was likely they were made of something much simpler than the rest of his outfit. As he continued to ramble on about the various rituals Papa Emeritus performed Before, Kate silently wondered if he dressed like this daily, or just to take meetings. Making a mental note to ask Jason later, Kate noticed the bandage wrapped around his hand. Frowning, they interrupted his speech to ask what had happened. 

“This? Oh, it’s nothing. An unfortunate fidget spinner accident, I’m afraid.” If he was taken aback at being interrupted, it didn't show. He seemed genuinely happy to be discussing himself; maybe even more so than he'd been discussing Papa Emeritus. “I appreciate your concern, but I assure you, it will heal.” 

Kate tilted their head, mouthing the words to themselves. _Fidget spinner?_. What the silt was a fidget spinner? Before Kate could give voice to the question, Braddick started laughing. 

“Of course you wouldn’t know what that is, dear.” His voice was sympathetic sounding, but in a way that reminded Kate of how the Elders spoke to the young children in the compound they grew up in. Concerned, yes; but with a healthy amount of condescension. Kate made a face as they watched Braddick rummage in one of his desk drawers before tossing a small thing across the desk. “Spin it, like this,” He held his fingers up, spinning an imaginary spinner.

Kate did as he asked, surprised that it spun so easily. 

“Brilliant! You see, before the First Bloom, these spinners were a sort of sport.” Kate glanced back at him and nodded briefly before returning her gaze to the spinner. “Only the most dexterous of athletes competed in the Fidget Spinner Games. The most common is duration. Though it seems some people tended to freestyle. There are videos all over SkyWeb, I could show you if you like?” 

Kate shook their head no thank you, and moved to hand the spinner back. 

The older man held his hands out in protest. “No, no. I couldn't. I…” He held his wounded hand up sadly, grimacing a bit. “You seem to have quite the hang of it. Why don't you keep it?”

Giving the spinner another whirl, Kate grinned, “I can do that. Thank you!”

“My pleasure.” Braddick bowed his head just enough to get his message across, and yet somehow not enough to send the hat tumbling. “Now… what is it you wanted to see me about? Erika told me, but I have to say, I think I misplaced the message.”

 _Finally,_ Kate thought, plopping the folder onto the desk, letting the bright colored images spill out. “See, what I was thinking, is that we, as a Council, could really stand to update our image. Shake things up a little? I've put together a collection of--” 

Kate was cut off by Braddick standing abruptly, sending his chair rolling back several inches. “What's that, E.V.i.E.? Yes, yes. Understand. And I completely agree.” Kate frowned, letting their eyes dart from the folder to Braddick. The intercom hasn't gone off…. Did Braddick have an implant? 

Without any further conversation, he shuffled over to Kate's side of the desk, haphazardly scooping the pages back into the folder before steering Kate towards the door. “Sorry, so sorry; but a situation has come up that must be attended to. You understand.” 

“But… can I just leave these he---”

“Can't hear you dear, have an AI chatting in my ear. Take it up with Erika, or message me again, we'll see what we can do. Speaker bless you.” 

There was a loud slam, and Kate found themself back on the outside of Braddick’s office, more than a little confused. What had just happened? And what was that music they heard from the other side of the door? Whatever it was, it didn’t sound official. 

“Gee, thanks E.V.i.E.” Kate said sarcastically, plopping down on the ground outside Braddick’s door. The stairs didn’t hold any appeal for them at the moment. 

The comment had been rhetorical, and they hadn’t expected an answer. So when the AI’s voice came crackling over the speaker outside the door, Kate almost jumped out of their skin.

“You’re welcome, Kate, but I can assure you, it wasn’t me that Braddick was talking to.” 

Kate frowned, flipping absentmindedly though the work he’d been so quick to dismiss. “Oh? Who was it then, another AI that he’s got implanted?”

“Or, he just didn’t want to talk to you. He’s been known to be… dismissive if he's not interested.” Pausing long enough to let Kate consider the information, E.V.i.E. continued. “Considering I’m the only AI known to the Rover Council, and that Braddick is currently watching an old serial comedy, I’d wager my suggestion is more likely than yours.”

Kate laughed. “You don’t so subtle well, do you?”

“No. That would be inefficient for an artificial intelligence.”

 _Of course it would._

“Awesome. So… what do you suggest I do now?” Kate felt a little strange talking to a disembodied voice while seated on the floor in the hallway in front of the bosses office, but here they were. 

“I am unsure. However, you could start by talking to Jason. Or Sid. Both of them are well versed in going against Braddick’s wishes. There’s a good chance that one, if not both of them would have an idea.”

Kate scowled. It didn’t sound like the best option to them. They'd really hoped that going through official channels would have done the trick. 

Their thoughts were broken by a laugh track joining the cheery music playing somewhere behind the office door. E.V.i.E. appeared to have been right. Angry at being put off, Kate hauled themself up off the floor, turned around and kicked the door. Hard.

It didn't accomplish a thing, but it made them feel a tiny bit better. On a whim, they pulled out one of the duplicate images in the folder, and slid it under the door. Braddick might not be willing to use their images, but by Speaker, he was sure as silt going to see one.

Pulling their lightscreen out, they tapped a few buttons and set a message to Sid, copying Jason on it. If they had any ideas Kate was all ears. Tucking the device away, they headed for the elevator, wondering if Cerberus had anything against art being hung on their walls …

**Author's Note:**

> Quick disclaimer: Okay guys, here’s the thing. Braddick, in the Rover Red universe, was based on an actual person, one of the Patreon supporters.  
> Real Brad, however; wasn’t involved in this project. He knew _something_ was going down, and he gave me permission to use a few things in the story. 
> 
> The point I’m getting at here is, Our Braddick is sort of a goof. Possibly more likeable than podcast!Braddock - but, still a bit of a mess. And as far as we know, these negative attributes aren’t any indication of the sort of person Real Brad is.  
> We’re sure he is a wonderful person who doesn’t wear Crocs (hey, unless its your thing. I hear they’re super comfy) and isn’t the pompous caricature we’ve made Braddick into.
> 
> But he might like Ghost. And if he doesn’t like Golden Girls, he should; and we’re not apologizing for that.


End file.
